By VC JACL Chapter
A rededication ceremony with Christian and Buddhist officiants will be held at the Historic Japanese Cemetery in Oxnard from 10-11 a.m. on Sept. 21.
The cemetery is one of the only known segregated Asian American cemeteries in California. Initially owned by the Hueneme Masons, the Masons allowed the early Japanese community in Ventura County to bury their dead in the segregated Japanese cemetery starting in 1908.
“This is an opportunity for us to gather the descendants of those who are buried in the cemetery, the Japanese American community and our supporters,” said Lily Anne Welty Tamai, the chapter’s co-president and assistant professor at California State University, Channel Islands, who has researched the cemetery’s history. “Our chapter has served as one of the unofficial caretakers of this historic site for many years. We can learn a lot about the early Japanese American community by examining the history and relationships of those buried in the cemetery.”
Tamai is also leading efforts to establish the cemetery as a historic site, and she will share a short presentation on the history of the cemetery at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center after the Rededication Ceremony from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Lunch will be included.
This project is funded through grants from the Japanese American Community Foundation and Keiro.
The Cemetery Ceremony will be held at the Historic Japanese Cemetery. To register for the presentation after the rededication, visit www.vcjacl.org.
